Rum saves Kerala public sector unit from the brink of closure

Jawan Deluxe XXX Rum has resurrected the fortunes of the company saving it from the brink of closure after the sugar and distillery divisions folded up.PK Krishnakumar | ET Bureau | July 04, 2016, 13:21 IST

Jawan Deluxe XXX Rum has resurrected the fortunes of the company saving it from the brink of closure after the sugar and distillery divisions folded up.KOCHI: Travancore Sugars and Chemicals (TSCL) is a Kerala government enterprise that no longer produces sugar; yet, it makes profit -unlike many other haemorrhaging state PSUs -from a single product; the state's favourite tipple.

Jawan Deluxe XXX Rum has resurrected the fortunes of the company saving it from the brink of closure after the sugar and distillery divisions folded up. Today, its survival hinges on this rum, which has become a rage among the common public in the state.

The balance sheet of the nearly 70 year old TSCL began to look up after its administrative control was taken over by the excise department from the industry department eight years ago. From 20,000 cases a month then, the sales of Jawan rum have zoomed to 1.25 lakh cases now.

The company's website says the Jawan rum is a popular brand with superior quality and competitive price. It is priced at Rs 360 for a one litre bottle. "More than the price our stress is on quality. The extra neutral alcohol we use is tested in the government laboratory and after blending, it is again tested," says Alex Abraham, general manager of TSCL, adding that the liquor is a big draw even in elite clubs.

Currently, the demand is such that, the company is able to distribute the product only in the southern and central parts of Kerala. The stock is insufficient to cover the entire state. TSCL is planning to add another assembly line to its existing three to ramp up production. "Except blending, the bottling and labelling are managed by Kudumbashree women workers who have been engaged on contract basis," Abraham says. Kudumbashree is a women-empowerment programme of the government aimed at poverty eradication. TSCL made a net profit of Rs 3 crore on a turnover of Rs 54 crore last year.Some of its earlier brands, which it has stopped producing now, include Highland Whiskey and Pamba Gin. Before 2008, though TSCL had been making Jawan Rum, it was running into losses. The company that began commercial production in 1948 under Parry & Co was incorporated eleven years before near Thiruvalla in Pathanamthitta district and had three divisions of sugar, distillery and blending and bottling. It was taken over by Kerala government in 1974. The first casualty was the sugar division, which closed down due to shortage of sugarcane in 1998. After liberalisation of arrack purchase and the arrack ban enforced by the Kerala government, it too met with the same fate as the sugar division.